21 NFL teams carried at least one player with domestic violence or assault charges on their rosters during the 2012 season. Chelsea Cristene offers suggestions for what to do to change that.

Pittsburgh is a town that loves its sports. This is apparent on every flashing marquee, on the side of every bus, and in every restaurant—chain and independent alike. One night last spring, I caught sight of this love in the lobby of Patron, a Mexican restaurant in Pittsburgh’s North Hills suburbs, and lost myself in the autographed pictures hanging floor to ceiling of all the Steelers who have eaten there.

But I was also introduced to another kind of history. “This place was all over the news a few years ago,” my cousin told me as we slid into our booth. “Remember Cedrick Wilson? Receiver for the Steelers? He came in here and hit his ex-girlfriend in the face.”

A different story than the one told by those smiling photographs, for sure. Shortly after the assault, owner Dan Rooney issued the following statement: “The Steelers do not condone violence of any kind, especially against women,” and Wilson was cut from the team. Likewise, Steelers running back Chris Rainey was cut hours after chasing down his girlfriend and slapping her during an altercation in January 2013.

But consistency is key, and not all athletes and teams have been playing by the same set of rules. Ahmad Brooks was picked up by the 49ers shortly after his release by the Bengals—only to go on and assault a teammate this past July. Following a domestic abuse charge in 2011, Green Bay linebacker Erik Walden received little more than a slap on the wrist—a mere one-game suspension.

Linebacker James Harrison continued to play for the Steelers after agreeing to enter counseling following assault charges in 2008, sparking an underdog-overcoming-adversity spin that journalists like Harold Abend have given the story. Abend portrays Harrison as a sympathetic figure despite his long history of violent outbursts—“The bumps and bruises he has sustained on the gridiron…pale in comparison to what he has endured off the field”—as though James Harrison is a victim of unfortunate circumstance and not a habitual instigator responsible for his own conduct.

1) Public outrage does not seem to amass until NFL violence escalates. We were shocked and horrified by the accusations surrounding Ray Lewis and, more recently, Aaron Hernandez. We were more than happy to weigh in on the Ben Rothlisberger rape allegations. And of course, there was the Jovan Belcher murder-suicide. Murder and suicide are horrific, but do not negate the terror living women (and men) experience at the hands of abusers.

One in four women will experience domestic violence in her lifetime. Normalizing and downplaying these incidents (It’s the couple’s private business; we don’t know the whole story) must end. Period.

2) The NFL has garnered a reputation for being THE professional sports organization with THE domestic violence problem. Sure, domestic violence appears in other sports (NBA star Jason Kidd’s assault charges; wrestler Chris Benoit’s double murder and suicide), but given that 21 of 32 NFL teams carried at least one player with domestic violence or assault charges on their rosters during the 2012 season, the NFL is in a unique position, to, as Churchill once advised, “see the opportunity in every difficulty.”

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Individual players are already seizing the opportunity to speak out. Cornerback Brandon Carr joined former Cowboys Emmitt Smith and Roger Staubach at a “Men Against Abuse” rally in Dallas last March. Ravens linebacker Chris Canty told USA TODAY Sports that “we’ve got to stop being silent about this,” after speaking at an April domestic violence awareness seminar in Baltimore. Canty’s teammate, defensive back Chris Johnson, is using his professional platform to share a very personal story: his sister, Jennifer, was shot and killed by her estranged boyfriend in December 2011. After taking in his sister’s two daughters to raise them as his own, Johnson now travels to various women’s shelters to promote awareness. And check out Giants quarterback Eli Manning’s participation alongside other professional athletes in the White House’s “1 is 2 Many” PSA, in case you missed it last summer.

As wonderful and necessary as this activism is, we need more of an impact from the NFL as a whole. I propose the following:

1) Tighten up the policy. The NFL must revise their current Personal Conduct Policy so that it is clear and consistent regarding domestic violence and assault matters. All teams in the league should be required to uphold this policy regardless of which current or potential players wind up in the hot seat—no high school athletic favoritism here. Change.org has already put the wheels in motion to petition Roger Goodell.

2) Start an official campaign. The NFL currently has no official campaign (Play 60) or initiative (breast cancer; going green) specifically targeting domestic violence. A league-wide campaign would unite the good work that many players are doing individually and inspire more activism in American communities. October is upon us, which means pink on hats and uniforms all over the field in support of breast cancer awareness. Wouldn’t it be great to see some purple for domestic violence awareness, too?

3) Partner up. Innumerable organizations have devoted themselves to raising domestic violence awareness. A partnership with the NFL could generate more volunteers, funding, and publicity, as it has for over 35 years with the United Way. Here are just a few of the groups and charities dedicated to domestic violence and related issues:

I didn’t know about Cedrick Wilson’s assault until I sat down to eat at the very scene of the crime. I didn’t know about James Harrison’s violent history until after we won the Super Bowl in 2009—after I donned his jersey and cheered my team to victory.

There is a picture of 21-year-old me sitting on a dorm room futon, pulling on the number 92. A friend snapped it moments after Harrison’s glorious 100-yard touchdown return, and reviewing the excitement on my face makes me long for the days of a more successful franchise. When I finally read up on the linebacker’s off-the-field reputation weeks after the big game, I felt palpable disappointment, the chest drop every fan feels when our biggest heroes let us down. I wanted to support my Steelers, but I did not want to support an abuser.

Being both a woman and an owner of Ben Rothlisberger and James Harrison jerseys has created a strange and troubling kind of cognitive dissonance for me, something that I haven’t fully figured out how to deal with. Perhaps the NFL could help. By doing its part to tackle the problem of domestic violence, the NFL would be taking a crucial step toward getting everyone’s head back in the game.

[…] dominated sports from the high school to the professional level) – there is a long history of domestic violence, rape, the glorification of the masculine and objectification of the feminine, rampant homophobia, […]

Kudos, Chelsea! This is such a compelling piece. Thanks for shedding light on domestic violence, a national crisis. Saving Promise (savingpromise.org) a nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing domestic violence, kicked off its iPromise campaign this month, Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The iPromise campaign seeks to engage America in the promise for change by asking them to submit a personal promise via a video or written pledge AND sign a letter to President Obama asking that he join the promise for change and make domestice violence a national priority. We would love if you would take our pledge and encourage your… Read more »

The OP uses the woozle to its full effect, The headline says we are going to have a talk about DV and the NFL but of course she adds in other types of violence which means her conclusions are based on various types of violence to indicate there is a problem that needs to be solved BUT all her solutions are ONLY to DV and not the other types of violence, of course the evidence she uses is citations to other ‘research’ that themselves are woozles and so forth.

@John Anderson: I highly doubt the NFL has more of a problem than anyone else, BUT the DV industry has to have corporate sponsors in order to survive. The problem with the info presented here by the author is just a classic example of a woozle it just isn’t funny anymore. People just take this info at face value. BTW, Here is a nice little mental exercise for you, look on any major news site on any given day and see how many articles they have about DV and then also note how many people keep saying “DV is a… Read more »

What a classic example of a woozle being built. The headline “NFL and Domestic Violence” The meat of the article uses various type of violence some of which have nothing to do with DV, some of the meat are only accusations, some of which never resulted in charges, some of which resulted in acquitals. And of course the real woozle, links to other woozles , the 1 in 4 number which has been debunked time and time again, by so many people I have lost count. If we ever hope to defeat DV we have to stop building woozles around… Read more »

This problem needs to be addressed on the college and even the high school level. Addressing it on the pro level is way too late. It all begins with the attitude of giving school athletes preferential treatment and not holding them accountable for the way they treat others away from the game. I saw evidence of this attitude myself when I was in high school. Football coaches in the district had no problem with any of their players bullying other students. I dare say there have been instances of coverups across the country involving players who have committed rape. As… Read more »

I am a domestic violence survivor! My name is Michelle my ex boyfriend hit me for the last time and did the worst damage August 2011. I have Traumatic brain injury I get confuses easily frustrated then upset angry because I’m not able to think clearly and figure things out that use to be so easy and normal I have two bulged disks in my back spine trouble nerve damage to entire left side pinched nerve in left ankle loss of my balance loss of taste numbness and tingling in mouth when I chew numbness and tingling in left arm… Read more »

P.S. I’d also like to see any NFL-sponsored DV awareness campaign dedicate even just a little attention to male victims of domestic violence. Players should be given resources so they or men they know can find help if they are victims of domestic violence. Maybe the NFL could have helped save Steve McNair.

“Shaun Gayle has spoken for the first time about the murder of his girlfriend and their unborn child.
The former Chicago Bears star said he had been completely devastated by Rhoni Reuter’s death – and was shocked to discover that police had once considered him a suspect.

He also described how he went undercover to help trap her killer, his former lover Marni Yang.”

“After the pair broke up the estate agent began stalking the footballer, hacking into his computer and following his every move.”

At the risk of being called, well, some sort of apologist, I have to point out that there is a real difference between a charge and a conviction. This is not meant to disparage the work of dedicated law enforcement personnel or call into question anyone in particular, but even with domestic violence charges the accused is innocent until proven guilty through due process. (Or if the accused confesses.) A charge, even an arrest for something, is not proof, and it is not guilt. Teams might have the right to suspend someone because a player’s current legal problems distract from… Read more »